Movie Reviews

The Manband, Live in Germany 200?

R. C. Steingraber | San Jose, California, USA | 09/03/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is a live concert video of a recent Manband line-up, including Deke Leonard (guitar, slide guitar & vocals), Martin Ace (Fender bass & vocals), Bob Richards (drums & backing vocals), Garreth Thorrington (keyboards & backing vocals), and certainly last,but not least, George Jones on guitar & vocals.George is the son of Man founder-member Mickey Jones, who was recovering from brain surgery at the time of this video.

The band is in fine form, "storming" from start to finish. It's a good selection of old and relatively new material, with Deke doing about half of the lead vocals, George and Martin about 1/4 of the lead vocals each. George is an exceptional guitarist, and sings somewhat like his Dad, Mickey. IMHO nobody compares to Mickey's unique guitar playing and angellic singing, so don't expect George to hit those lofty peaks, but he certainly performs exceptionally well here. Deke is a powerhouse, as fans would expect, and Bob Richards is probably the finest drummer they've had since Terry Williams. The keyboards are wonderful and add some depth to the sound, but don't expect long spacey keyboard forays like those done in the old days by Phil Ryan and Clive John. Most of the songs stretch -out quite a bit. the band plays with a lot of power and dynamics. The guitar-work is stellar.

The quality of the video is dubious. Although there are multiple cameras, the video is not comparable to most professional videos on the market. but you can see the band members fairly clearly, and the sound is pretty good. I wish George's guitar was a little more prevalent in the mix, but I consider the sound acceptable, not great.

Songs performed are:

Conflict of Interest,Love Isn't Love,Manillo,I Always Thought the Walrus Was Protected,C'mon,The Ride & the View,Stuck Behind the PopeMobile,7171-551,Daughter of the Fireplace,

and three encores:

Spunk Rock, Romain, and Asylum.

For long time ManBand fans, this is a no-brainer! Get It Now!!!It is a powerful, blazing show, with the band hitting on all cylinders. It's not perfect, and it is not one of the original 70's line-ups, but it is the only Man video footage available in the USA (that I know of). I don't know if I would recommend it to non-fans, though. If you're a fan, get it pronto!!!